Quest:The Giants - Part II - Stonesong
General Information Events go from bad to worse as Jask-Jikarn now leads an army of goblins to take up residence in the lair of his deceased half-brother, Hawnley-Jakk. As the wicked giant's evil shadow falls over the land, you find yourself on a desperate and dangerous quest to retrieve the one weapon with the power to defeat his savage might. Tips * Follow the recommended strategy to kill the golems. * You can restore SP outside the tomb, but not NV. * The random encounters have fairly good loot drop rates. If you need cash, gather as much as you can before completing the quest. Encounters increase after you acquire the so that's a good time to grind, but be aware that exiting at that point will end the quest. Due to the 'density' of foes and unlimited time and opportunity to hack at them, there is a considerable amount of combat and general XP to be gained here (think hundreds, but even thousands, if you can hold out long enough!), accompanied by an avalanche of choice loot (see spoiler below for an example of items collected during a single session inside the crypt, discarding lesser and heavier items as I went along, to maximize 'resale value'), and - potentially - a dozen or more Aldvarian Artifacts, along with a couple of Wood Icons... not to mention several thousand gold tokens dropped by endless waves of the prey-sniffing revenant... This may well be the single best impromptu, one-time grinding spot for lower-level players (ideally around MR 90-100 and SP 100+)... So grab your Hale Blade and 'chop till you (nearly) drop', only exiting once you've run out of NV and options, being uncomfortably low on SP. Keep your late exploration and encounters one square away from either of the two exit points, so that you never have to contend with more than one additional fight, once you decide that it's time to bail out, and don't hesitate to use your Blessings of Protection, if you must - compared to the loot, the price of one Blessing (or even all three of them!) is a drop in the bucket So here, that one example comprising all the loot obtained during a single run of this particular scenario! (Do not add items then, as these are all the items present in that loot, and this serves only as one example, to illustrate the relative worth of this particular impromptu, one-off grinding spot. Other, even better items are very possible, seeing as the items on this list were obtained without possessing the Quickstone, and so without that object's "loot-enhancing" effects! There are 46 entries in this list, some representing multiples of the same type of object, for a total of 59 items.) Edit 3/2015 - The assault rate for this encounter upon picking up the horn is no longer every square. This negates the opportunity to grind in the fashion indicated above. I've gone 10-20 steps between battles is now common. Edit 7/2015: The random generation of petrified enemies prior to picking up Stonesong now has a limit. It appears that only 20 random encounters are possible, then you must collect Stonesong. Once Stonesong is in hand, encounters are only limited by the amount of healing/sp you have. One recommendation is to train restoration somewhere past 60% so that you can heal 20+ sP during a round of battle. Prerequisites * The Giants - Part I - A Solemn Decree Map Legend Strategy * NW golem first, then SE, SW, and NE. * All golems have higher MR and SP if you fight them out of order. Text Directions Short Version This version assumes you have no need to read the words on the walls since you can read them here. All instructions begin at the (S)tairs in the center of the map. * To northwest golem: west, west, north, north, north, north, west, west, south, east. * To southeast golem: east, east, south, south, south, south, east, east, north, west. * To southwest golem: west, west, south, south, south, south, west, west, north, east. * To northeast golem: east, east, north, north, north, north, east, east, south, west. * To the large, block stone: west, west, south, south, south, south, west, west, north, north. Use the gems. * To the roughly, circular impressions: north, use ring, south, east, use ring, west, south, use ring, north, west, use ring. * To the crack: west, west, north, north, north, north, west, west, south, south, receive the Stonesong. Long Version This version assumes you do not exit to rest (though you can - just resume where you left off here in the text). N=North, E=East, S=South, W=West. * Starting at (S)tairs. * N, W, read, E twice, read, W, S twice, E, read, W twice, read. * W, N twice, W, read, E, North twice, W twice, S, E, kill golem. * W, N, E twice, S six times, E twice, read, E three times, read, W, S twice, E twice, N, W, kill golem. * E, S, W twice, N twice, W five times, read, E, S twice, W twice, N, E, kill golem. * W, S, E twice, N six times, E twice, read, E three times, read, W, N twice, E twice, S, W, kill golem. * E, N, W twice, S six times, W five times, S twice, W twice, N twice, use gems. * S twice, E twice, N four times, E, use ring, E, S, use ring, N, E, use ring, W, N, use ring. * S, W twice, N four times, W twice, S twice, get Stonesong. * N twice, E twice, S four times, E twice, use stairs and exit. Walkthrough * Towards dawn while resting at the Hillsfeet Inn, you suddenly catch sight of a shadowy figure pressed into the corner of your room. You gain 8 XP to Divination for successfully determining the man to be honourable. * He attacks you! Even if you lose, he still decides you're good enough for the job. He then leads you north to Targannar's Rest, a tomb located near the Cragbluff Moor. * Irvor sets up a makeshift camp at the edge of the moor near the entrance to the tomb. Resting there fully recovers SP but not NV. You can also speak to Irvor and he will help you decipher the strange words you find in the tomb. * Once you enter the tomb, follow the strategy for getting rid of the golems. Each one gives you ~128-130 combat XP and one of the following: ** NW golem - ** SE golem - ** SW golem - ** NE golem - * The golems are: if you do them in the suggested order, else they are: . * You will encounter various random foes while navigating the tomb. They range from 3+ to 8+ at MR 78 with 100-120 SP and give 1-5 combat XP. You can flee from combat after the second round if you wish. * Once you've acquired all 4 gems from the golems, go examine the large (B)lock stone and it will give you a clue (think EARS). You get 128 general XP for using the gems in the correct order - but keep in mind that each one must be placed while closely examining the plinth. * You are then attacked by a , and receive a after defeating it. * Use the ring on the 4 roughly-circular impressions and receive 32 general XP for each. * Go to the ©rack on the floor and retrieve the . As you do, a voice warns you will never leave the tomb alive. Thereafter, random encounters will occur on almost every square as you inch your way out of the tomb, which are of a similar level as their earlier versions for the most part, except that some reach levels as high as 7+ at MR 99. * Irvor happily greets you upon exit, the quest ends, and you receive 1024 general XP for completion. Rewards Included in Walkthrough. For a veritable flood of gold tokens, combat and general XP, choice loot, and more (Aldvarian Artifacts, Wood Icons), see Tips above.